Holly Burton

"Heartfelt, experimental, story-driven, real. an interesting quality to your voice that certainly leaves me wanting to hear more. Textures. Colors. Warmth. Strength" WomenFolk I started singing when I was a little girl and it has always come naturally to me-I don't really have a technical bone in my body to speak of!! I have a restless pen and a devotion to creating something of beauty in order to support the human condition. I am thankful to Myspace for providing some place for people to hear what I do because otherwise it would probably get lost in the ether!!

My Mum had a beautiful voice and once had an opportunity to sing with Tony Bennett in San Fransico - she was too shy to take up on it. Her mother again had a beautiful voice, and being of Scandanavian descent was offered a chance to sing with the Swedish Opera. Again, her fears of leaving her family (which at that time would have been a daunting prospect-she lived in Seattle) stopped her from taking the offer. I have been blessed to carry this legacy of the voice to the next generation. The thing is bigger than me and I hope that I can take it to the next level if it is meant to be. Thanks for enjoying what I have to offer



"I first encountered Holly Burton in a folk club (but don't worry, she ain't no fragile female folk singer) singing covers, accompanied by a guitarist called Ken Powell (who was more recently part of a band called Risky Business). I particularly recall a fine interpretation of the old Bonnie Raitt standard, 'Nobody's Girl', but the really memorable part of the evening was that voice. It had the sort of quality - tough and tender by turns - which could have coaxed some emotion even from a rendition of the Manchester Yellow Pages.



Not that the songwriter from Seattle, long resident in Greater Manchester, has ever struggled for material. The covers have been long been abandoned in favour of elegant self-penned material. I always look forward to the self-produced mini-CDs which turn up in the post from time to time, starting with 1995's Let Me Press Go, which keep me updated on the Burton oevre. Sometimes it's just been the woman herself on guitar, sometimes she's been ably assisted by the likes of guitarist Sean Bechhofer and Phil 'I'm just a bass player' Cawsey. The songs get better with each release. Burton hones her talent at intimate local venues like the Iguana Bar and Café Rouge and she's was a mainstay of the 'Why Worry' Club, Manchester's longest-running haunt for the singer-songwriter; but I've long felt that her work deserves a wider audience. It's not just the songs (although these are always well worth a listen). It';s also the manner in which they're put over - by a performer with a powerful stage presence and (although I generally resist using such an over-employed term) real charisma, not exactly hindered by striking features to which no photo I've seen to date really does justice. The gal's got class."



Dave Tuxford

Folk and Roots Editor, City Life



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